Microsoft plans to build more Unix features into future versions of its Windows Server operating system and cease work on its separate Services For Unix product. Microsoft plans to include some of those features in Windows Server 2003 R2, an update to the server OS due at the end of this year. At the same time, the company said it is not planning any further releases of the standalone Services For Unix product. DiStasio, a director in the Windows Server unit, said the plan is to build Unix tools into releases beyond R2 as well, but he did not rule out that there might be some tools offered separate from the OS.

Linux is already the dominant player in the server market and now it has started to become a major player on the corporate and home desktops.

Slow down there. We still have a long way to go before Linux is "dominant" anywhere. Linux is doing very well in the server market in general and it has been a major player in the webserver market for years now but the desktop is still new territory. The desktop hasn't really been a focus of Linux development until recently and it will take a long time to dethrone MS no matter how crappy Windows is. I use Linux on the desktop and have for years but in terms of marketshare and mindshare Linux still has a lot of catching up to do. The good thing is that it seems that Linux has already captured the "power-user" market and is now creeping its way down to the average joe. I've encountered more than a few non-technical people who are now giving Linux a try.